Russian Paralympic Committee Continues Preparing for Rio Games Without Emotion

The Russian Paralympic team continues to train for the upcoming summer games in Rio and is examining legal ways to battle doping accusations without succumbing to emotions, Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) President Vladimir Lukin said Monday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – International Paralympic Committee (IPC) President Philip Craven imposed a blanket ban on Russian Paralympic athletes on Sunday, giving the RPC until August 28 to appeal the decision.

"If necessary, we will seek legal solutions to this problem. We are thinking about which arbitration is acceptable. We do not want to quarrel and be impulsive. Our team continues to prepare for the Games," Lukin said at a press conference.

Contrasting the IPC’s previous high praise and personal awards given to him by Craven, Lukin said "such a change brings about thoughts that this is motivated by something unsportsmanlike."

"This will be a flagrant violation of human rights. The Olympians are first admitted, should there be stronger punishment for people with disabilities?" the official asked.

The summer Paralympics are scheduled to be held in Rio de Janeiro on September 7-18.